Lucy Naylor: Auckland Primary Principals' Association President on students reportedly performing better in English and Maths

Promising signs of improvement across the primary education sector.  

The Education Review Office has found teachers are seeing more engaged students, and three-quarters of parents report progress since the start of the year. 

It follows new data showing more new entrants exceeding phonics expectations. 

President of Auckland Primary Principals' Association Lucy Naylor told Mike Hosking they're also noticing changes in the engagement and attention of children.  

She says although the curriculum is still new, these are good signs. 

Naylor told Hosking the new English and maths curriculum is like a springboard for the next round of subject improvements.  

She says the slower roll out in other areas has been useful for teachers, so they can focus on core subjects first and feel prepared for more changes to come.  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Another good report from our education sector. ERO report shows

(00:03):
changes to how the English and maths are taught in
primary schools, making a material difference. So teachers are seeing
higher student engagement. Three quarters of parents say their child
are showing clear progress. Lucy Naylor's the Auckland Primary Principal's
Association president, also principal at Milford School and as well,
it's Lucy morning.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
Good morning mate, would you agree?

Speaker 1 (00:20):
Do you see it?

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Absolutely? Look, this is very promising early signs of improvement
across the sector. As you say, teachers and parents are
reporting that students achieving much better in English and maths. Yeah,
we're really starting to see a change.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
Good, good, good. My only concern about this report is
it's observational as opposed you know, one on one equals two.
Observations are a bit loose around the edges. Is a
feel good as valuable as a number.

Speaker 2 (00:47):
In this instance, Because it's early days, I think it is.
We've only been implementing the new curriculum since February this year,
so we haven't really got a lot of traction. But
this is definitely good signs and promising for moving forwards.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
And have you seen it in the phonics that we
talked about earlier on in the week as well.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Absolutely. Look, I'm talking from my own school now. Absolutely,
we've seen huge improvements and the phonics checks and the
engagement as well and the attention of the children that
are being taught using structure literacy.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
Isn't this Because we had Eric Iron yesterday and I asked,
is this low hanging fruit? I mean, in other words,
what I mean is is this the easy stuff? And
of course we were going to see improvement? Or is
this material? Do you think? And this will continue?

Speaker 2 (01:34):
I think this is going to continue to be honest,
I think education that the English and math criculum and
we're kind of at a springboard. We're all prepped and
ready to leap into next year. There has been a
slow down and the roll out of the other curricular mirrors,
which is really useful for the secretor because we can
really focus and now the English and the mast.

Speaker 1 (01:53):
Isn't this wonderful to be talking about education at long
last and such a positive light?

Speaker 2 (01:59):
Oh? Look? Absolutely, And that success is largely down to
the massive work that primary schools teachers and leaders have
put into implementing the curriculum changes.

Speaker 1 (02:11):
I'm so excited to go well, Lucy, appreciate the insight,
Lucy Naylan, the al Con Primary Principles Association, all the
people texting me on this was yesterday as well as
you realize it's only a small sample. Mind, is there
a default position among some people in this country to
be miserable and to be negative? All we've presented so
far this week is good news. Is there more? Hopefully do?
We know? Not yet, But what we have so far
is good news. Things are changing, things are getting better.

(02:33):
And all the teachers and all the principles, all the administrators,
and all the government ministers and all the people have
worked on this deserve credit for what is seemingly indisputably
a success story.

Speaker 2 (02:44):
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